We are meeting in-person at the centre for our activities, and will continue sharing them on Zoom unless otherwise indicated:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83864262659?pwd=SEdHNTFRUDZ0YlBOZEY1ck1PdElWUT09

Meeting ID: 838 6426 2659
Passcode: 311753
To join by telephone: 438-809-7799

Membership and donations ensure the sustainability and flourishing of our Centre as well as supporting our resident lama. Please give what you can.

https://rigpedorjemontreal.org/en/dons

All activities are led by Acharya Chöying Gyurmey, our Resident Lama, unless otherwise specified.

Saturdays, February 1 and 15, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
IN PERSON ONLY

Dharma Book Club

We are reading Excellent at the Beginning by Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche. We will be discussing the chapter “The Four Foundations of Mindfulness.”

Everyone is welcome.

By donation

Saturdays, February 1, 8, 15 and 22, 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (In French)
IN PERSON ONLY

Study program on the book: The Words of My Perfect Teacher by Patrul Rinpoche

led by Pierre Orgyen Cardinal under the guidance of Acharya Chöying Gyurmey

Registration is complete.

Sunday, February 2, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Tea meditation 

Led by Acharya Chöying Gyurmey and Tea Master Vivian Li

A tea meditation involves being mindful and present during all aspects of the tea ritual, including making the tea, drinking the tea, and being aware of the environment and the effects on your mind and body. Tea meditation is an example of how to apply meditation to daily life.

Please join us for a potluck lunch after the meditation. (Bring vegetarian food to share.)

By donation

Mondays, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Beginners’ Tibetan Language Class

Taught by Miriam Paknys under the direction of Acharya Chöying Gyurmey

Registration is complete.

Wednesday, February 5, 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Medicine Buddha Day
Medicine Buddha Sadhana

Medicine Buddha is the practice of physical, psychological, and spiritual healing. This Healing Buddha practice reveals the true cause of any affliction.

By donation

Thursdays, February 6, 13 and 20, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Intermediate Tibetan Language Class

Registration is complete.

Friday, February 7, 6:30 to 9:00 p.m.

Guru Rinpoche Day
Kunchok Chidu Sadhana and Tsok offering 

Prayers to Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche, are considered increasingly powerful in these difficult times. He is often invoked for protection and to remove obstacles.

By donation

Saturday, February 8, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Tonglen meditation and the King of Aspiration Prayer

Tonglen (a Tibetan word meaning “sending and receiving”) is a meditative practice of mind training (lojong) to develop the inner qualities of loving kindness, compassion, and bodhicitta.

The recitation of the Aspiration Prayer (Mönlam) is made to spread the seeds of loving kindness and pure motivation, to activate their power, and hence bring about genuine peace, love, happiness, and well-being in the world. ~ 17th Gyalwang Karmapa

By donation

Sundays, February 9, 16 and 23, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
PLEASE NOTE NEW TIME.

Shamatha (calm abiding meditation)

Shamatha meditation is a fundamental Buddhist contemplative practice that develops the mind’s ability to reach a state of tranquility and lucidity.

By donation

Sundays, February 9, 16 and 23, 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Chair Yoga 

Course Objectives:

This Chair Yoga course is designed to improve flexibility, strength, and balance through gentle, seated yoga exercises. Participants will learn simple, accessible techniques to enhance mobility, stability and promote overall well-being, all while remaining safely seated in/or with the support of a chair. The course aims to foster a sense of calm and physical vitality, helping to incorporate mindful movement into one’s daily routines.

The Instructor: Meet Huong Nguyen, a seasoned yoga instructor originally from Vietnam with over 20 years of dedicated practice. With a deep passion for holistic health and well-being, Huong specializes in a gentle, mindful approach to yoga, focusing on movements that promote relaxation, strength, and flexibility. Her teaching style is patient, nurturing, and inclusive, making yoga accessible to all, including seniors.

Cost for the 6-session course: Members: $60 / Non-members: $80

Registration

Wednesday, February 12, 6:30 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.
IN PERSON ONLY

Full Moon Day
Sojong, Treasury of Blessings, Heart Sutra, Lamp Offering

Sojong is a short ritual for taking the eight Mahayana vows of a lay practitioner for a single day. These vows are to be taken before sunrise and include not eating after the midday meal.

The Treasury of Blessings Sadhana is a simple and beautiful meditation on Sakyamuni Buddha that anyone can practise.

The Heart Sutra encapsulates the topic of the Prajnaparamita (Transcendent Perfection of Wisdom) Sutra on the unerring paths of methods taught in all Sutras. 

Through the Lamp Offering, we offer light with the aspiration that obstacles to personal and global peace be overcome; and that happiness, love, and compassion spread throughout the world and benefit all beings.

Please join us for breakfast after the practice.

Suggested donation: $5 per person/$15 per family

Wednesdays, February 12 and 19, 7:00 p.m. to 8:15 p.m.

Chenrezik and Amitabha Sadhanas

Love, compassion, joy, and wisdom—together known as bodhicitta—are the indivisible nature of the Buddha’s enlightened mind. Chenrezik (Skt. Avalokiteshvara), the Buddha of Infinite Compassion, embodies these virtuous qualities. 

Through the practice of Amitabha, the Buddha of Boundless Light, beings, especially those with faith, are guided to rebirth in Dewachen (Skt. Sukhavati), the pure realm of immaculate happiness, joy, and bliss. 

By donation

Saturday, February 22, 10 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. 

Dakini Day
Green Tara sadhana

Green Tara is a fully enlightened female Buddha in Vajrayana Buddhism. She represents both wisdom and compassion. Through her practice, which includes mantra recitation, visualization, and meditation, we receive protection, guidance, and achieve spiritual growth. Her mantra, “Om Tare Tutare Ture Soha,” awakens one’s inherent Buddha-nature, promoting inner peace, compassion, wisdom, and enlightenment.

By donation

Wednesday, February 26, 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Guru Yoga of the Third Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche and Calling the Guru from Afar

In the Vajrayana tradition, devotion to the guru is extremely important. It’s a fundamental practice. To cultivate this devotion, we recite these heartfelt supplications to the guru, asking for their blessings to realize all the stages of the path to enlightenment. With a heart filled with disillusionment and renunciation, we humbly ask the guru to bestow their blessings upon us. We chant the prayer melodiously, confident in the knowledge that our guru is none other than the Awakened One.

By donation

Thursday, February 27, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Dharma Protector Day

Tibetan Year-End Mahakala Sadhana and Tsok Offering

Mahakala Bernagchen is a Wisdom Deity, a Bodhisattva whose wrathful manifestation is an expression of skillful means to subdue harmful forces affecting beings, personally and globally. On this last day of the Tibetan lunar calendar, we perform the Mahakala Puja to thank the Dharma protectors for their assistance over the past year and to request their continued protection and peace and happiness in the coming year.

Please bring cookies, fruits, cake, juice, etc., for the Tsok Offering

The Tibetan traditional 9-grain soup will be offered to everyone.

By donation

Saturday, March 1, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. 

Losar—Celebration of the Tibetan New Year 

Please join us to celebrate the Tibetan New Year, the Year of the Wood Snake.

During this celebration we will perform a Mandala Offering and offer Khatas to the Shrine.

We will recite the Treasury of Blessings Sadhana, a simple and beautiful meditation on Sakyamuni Buddha that anyone can practise. By reflecting upon the qualities of the Buddha and resting the mind in the recitation of mantras, we can pacify destructive emotions and sow the seeds for enlightenment.

We will conclude our celebration with a Lamp Offering, with the aspiration that the light of loving kindness, compassion and understanding will overcome all personal and global obstacles. May happiness, love and compassion spread throughout the world and benefit all beings and the planet.

Suggested donation for Lamp Offering: $5 per person/$15 per family.

By donation